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Epic
Epic
An epic in its most specific sense is a genre of classical poetry originating in Greece. The
conventions of this genre are several:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
(j)
(k)
The term applies most directly to classical Greek texts like the Iliad and the Odyssey but it is
clear that Roman authors like Virgil intentionally imitate the genre in works like the Aeneid.
However, some critics have applied the term more loosely. The Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf
has also been called an epic of Anglo-Saxon culture, Milton's Paradise Lost is called an epic
of Christian culture, El Cid is an epic of Spanish culture, Longfellow's Hiawatha is an epic of
American culture, and Shakespeare's various History Plays have been collectively called an
epic of Renaissance Britain. Contrast with the mock epics of Alexander Pope and later
Enlightenment writers to see its influence in humorous form.